The card game of poker, with its many variations, has grown tremendously in popularity. The most popular poker games, such as Texas Hold'em and Omaha, provide each player with two to four unique cards that are then used in combination with five community cards to form the best five card poker hand. A standard deck of playing cards contains 52 unique cards which would limit direct play in a game like Texas Hold'em to no more than 23 players (with each player receiving two cards plus the five community cards). For all practical purposes, however, no more than 10 or 11 players can play against one another at a single table since it is necessary to be able to easily see each player at the table. In the game of Omaha, in which each player is provided with four playing cards, no more than 11 players can play directly against one another using a standard 52 card deck.
Several attempts have been made to increase the number of players who are able to play poker against one another. Poker tournaments provide many players with the opportunity to play in a single tournament, although often no more than 10 players are able to play directly against each other at any one table in a tournament. Hundreds of players and even thousands are able to play in single poker tournament either at actual tables or through the internet. Nevertheless, regardless of the number of players playing in a poker tournament, these tournaments still only allow players to play directly against no more than 10 or 11 players at any one time.
The various games of poker require a player to exercise judgment in determining when to bluff, when to hold playing cards and when to discard playing cards. Players can spend a lifetime trying to master the skill necessary to be successful at poker. The need for a certain level of skill has discouraged some players from playing the game of poker. Many versions of poker have been invented to address these concerns. Video poker, three-card poker and other types of poker games have eliminated the bluffing component, while also limiting betting discretion. Nevertheless, a player often must still exercise judgment over when to hold playing cards and when to discard playing cards.
Lottery-type games, such as keno, allow many players to play against one another for a large prize without the need to exercise judgment. A need therefore existed for providing a new, exciting variation of poker capable of combining the popular attributes of the game of poker with the lottery-type ability to allow many players to play against one another for a large prize without needing to exercise a great deal of judgment over how to play the game.